Beauty From Pain
by SofiaSofiaSofia
Summary: Mainly a Lexzie story with quite a lot of Calzona and Maddison. Some MerDer, Crowen, and other couples as well.  Sensitive subject matter a few chapters in.
1. Christmas Eve

**A/N: I will always ship Lexzie. Always, always, always. So, I wrote a fic about them. It also has quite a lot of Calzona and Maddison, with a little bit of MerDer, Crowen and some other couples. **

**Alex and Izzie never got divorced, but their relationship did suffer. Addison is back in Seattle and dating Mark. She has a baby girl who was concieved using donated sperm while she still lived in L.A. Calzona and Mark have continued raising Sofia as a team. Meredith and Derek have not tried to concieve or adopt again, but they are happy. Cristina and Owen have also just been going on with life. George was never killed, nor did he go to war.  
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**Alex's family is a little different in this. I thought them up back when we knew very little about them. Alex's dad was abusive and is no longer in their lives. However, unlike on the show, their family was able to overcome it and become stronger as a family. None of them suffer from mental health issues or any of that that has been mentioned on the show. Their names are also different.**

**Please be warned that this fic will contain sensitive subject matter a few(ish) chapters in.  
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* * *

><p>"So she has no idea about any of this?" Carrie Karev asked her brother Alex.<p>

"No," he said. "And keep it that way."

"I can keep a secret."

"No, you can't," he replied.

He put the engagement ring on a chain and hung it in their elaborately decorated Christmas tree. It had always been his wife's favourite holiday, but he had a feeling that tomorrow morning would be extra perfect.

Sure, they were already husband and wife – and had been for a few years – but renewing their vows just seemed to be the right thing. For one, he had never gotten to actually propose to his bride. His family had also missed out on the wedding. The second time around, everything would be different. Izzie would be healthy, the proposal would be as romantic as Alex Karev could manage, and his family would be a part of the wedding.

Anna Cambel and her three children had always been close, but things had been tough ever since Alex had moved to Washington to begin his internship. The four had remained just as close emotionally, but not being able to see Alex on a regular basis was tough. One by one, the other three family members had moved to Seattle. Supporting Alex and Izzie during her battle with cancer was the driving force behind their decision, and now that they were happy and settled in Washington, none of them wanted to go back.

Carrie looked over to her mother and oldest brother for a little back-up. Anna smiled. "Sorry, but he's right."

"Mom!"

"You don't do it on purpose," Tony Karev added. "You just can't keep a happy secret. You get so excited that you can't keep it in."

"I don't know how you three can," she said. "Iz is gonna be so excited!"

"Keep it down," Alex warned. "She's just upstairs."

"Sorry!" Carrie whispered, realizing her mistake.

The jingling sound of the black lab's collar could be heard as he bolted down the stairs, excited to hear that their company was still over.

"What's up, Oreo?" Alex laughed, patting the head of the two-year-old pet who had gotten his name because Izzie thought that the white strip down the middle of his otherwise all black body reminded her of the brand of cookie.

"Your daddy's gonna propose to your mommy tomorrow!" Carrie whispered to the dog. "Don't tell, 'kay?"

"If you keep saying it, his mommy'll hear you," Tony pointed out.

Izzie came down from the stairs. "Did I wake you up when I went upstairs, Oreo?" she asked. "Sorry, Sweet Boy."

"So what time is everyone else coming tomorrow?"

"Derek's working late, but we're just gonna start without him," Izzie replied. "I thought it was rude, but Meredith said we could, so…"

"And George gets off at four," Carrie said. "Which means it'll be more like six, but…"

"Not always."

"I'm just getting used to dating a surgeon," Carrie said. "Pushing everything back a couple hours is always a good idea."

"I asked Addison and she said that she, Sloan, Robbins and Torres are doing their own thing," Alex said.

"I know," his wife nodded. "I asked Arizona."

Addison had come back to Seattle a year ago, which led Alex to go back to the "gynie squad." It was nothing against Pediatrics or Arizona, but he just couldn't pass up the opportunity to work alongside Addison Montgomery again. His wife was a part of the Pediatric surgery team now, anyways. It wasn't like he was leaving Arizona with no one.

"Oh."

"But I did tell her we'd stop by and give the girls the presents we bought them. I told her what we got Sofia and I asked her to tell Addison and Mark we had something for Felicity, too."

"You get your ex's ex's kid Christmas gifts?" Carrie asked.

"You and George got her something, too," she laughed. "And you're currently dating him."

"Yeah, but what about…?"

"Yeah, I wasn't exactly Callie's favourite person. But we're beyond that. I mean, she's happier than ever with Arizona. And you and George are really happy, too. Plus, that whole hospital loves Sofia. How could we not?"

"So are we saying six?" Anna asked.

"Sure."

"Sounds good."

"Every other year I've been so excited for Christmas, but this year, I just wanna get it over with."

"What?" Carrie asked. "You are still Izzie, right?"

"She has her reasons," Alex smiled. "But Babe, you're gonna love this Christmas. Trust me."

"What are her reasons?" Anna asked. "For Izzie not to be thrilled that it's Christmas is just…"

"Crazy," Tony said.

"Can I tell them?" Izzie asked her husband. "Please?"

"Sure," Alex nodded.

"We were gonna tell you guys tomorrow, but…we're gonna start trying for babies. We have an appointment booked for January sixth with a fertility specialist who's doing a trial on conceiving after cancer. The IVF we need'll be so much cheaper because of the trial, and once we found that out, it just seemed like the perfect time to start trying."

"Not just because it's cheaper," Alex clarified. "Also because we're actually ready for babies."

"Yep," Izzie laughed. "But it gets expensive. So the cost thing helps."

"That's great," Anna smiled.

"So I kind of can't wait for the new year."

"This could be your last Christmas just the two of you," Tony pointed out. "Enjoy it."

"Like they won't enjoy Christmases with babies?" Carrie asked.

"Not what I meant," he said.

"Christmases with kids are so much better," Anna told them.

"I can't wait for a whole bunch of little Karevs," Izzie smiled.

"A whole bunch?" Alex asked. "Let's not say that before pumping you full of fertility meds, Iz."

"One at a time," she clarified. "Though twins would be okay, too."

He smiled; it was nice to see his wife so happy after all they had been through. Cancer had almost taken Izzie's life. Their marriage had also suffered, but here they were. This Christmas they were happier than ever and finally able to make some actual plans for the future. He was also thankful that his wife hadn't noticed a symbol of one of those plans right in front of her on the tree.

* * *

><p>"Sofia, look," Callie said as the energetic twenty-one-month-old danced around the Christmas tree singing "Frosty the Snowman" the best that her almost-two-year-old self could.<p>

"Huh?"

"We say 'yes, Madre?'" Arizona corrected her.

"Yes?" Sofia repeated.

"Even Baby Licy's sleepy," Callie said. "Santa's all ready to come, but he can't because you're still up."

Sofia went over and gave Daddy's girlfriend's baby a kiss on her little hand. "Up," she said.

"Oh, Felicity doesn't want to wake up," Addison said, wiping the toddler slobber off of her six-month-old's arm. "She's sleepin' so Santa can come."

"I don't think the Santa thing is working," Mark pointed out.

"Got anything better?" Arizona asked.

Her parents were in town for the holiday and they had gotten Sofia all riled up. It didn't matter that Grandma and Grandpa had gone to their hotel for the night. Sofia was still very excited about spending the day with them.

"C'mon, Little Goose," Mark said, getting up and picking up his daughter. "Let's put out the milk and cookies and call it a night."

"Big," she said.

"Oh, you're 'Big Goose' now? Is Felicity 'Little Goose?'"

"Yes."

He kissed her. "I love you, you know."

"Yeah."

"Tomorrow's Christmas," he said. "What do you think about that?"

"Fun?"

"Oh, we'll have so much fun!"

"Grandma and Grandpa'll be back," Callie said. "And Abuelo said he'd call."

"Oh."

"And you and Licy get presents, Sof," Mark said as he brought her into Callie and Arizona's kitchen to get the cookies they were putting out.

"Cookie?" she asked. "Yum?"

"You already had two cookies tonight," Callie said. "All done."

"Oh."

"Nice try," Mark smiled.

"Sof, tomorrow is Felicity's first Christmas ever. Can you show her how it works?" Addison asked.

"Sata," she said, trying to say "Santa."

"You'll tell her that Santa came?"

"Yep."

"She'll be happy to hear that."


	2. Christmas Morning

Alex woke up to the smell of the bacon and eggs that his wife was making for their Christmas morning breakfast. He made his way down to the kitchen and wrapped his arms around her waist as she put the strips of bacon onto a plate.

"Merry Christmas," he smiled, kissing her neck.

"Merry Christmas."

"I was kind of hoping for a Christmas quicky, but…"

"Sorry," she said. "I couldn't resist starting breakfast. I already made a fresh batch of cookies, too."

He laughed. "Christmas screws with something in your head, doesn't it?"

"I just love it," she said.

"I know," he replied, letting her go and going over to the fridge to get the orange juice.

"But Christmas shower sex is still an option," she pointed out.

She brought both plates over and placed them down on their tiny table. That was Oreo's cue to come check out what was going on. He made his way into the kitchen and sat in between their chairs, clearly hoping for a Christmas treat.

"Merry Christmas!" Izzie told him as they sat down to begin their meal. "We'll give you a piece of the turkey later, 'kay? This is breakfast just for Mommy and Daddy."

He laid down as if he was feeling defeated.

Alex laughed. "Sorry, Pup. Go check out your bowl. There's something there."

Oreo simply looked up with at him with his big blue eyes.

"No, huh?" Izzie asked. "It's not as good as bacon?"

The phone rang just as they took their first bites. Izzie got up and went over to it, thinking it was someone calling to wish them a merry Christmas. "Oh," she frowned when she saw the hospital's number pop up on the caller ID.

"What?" Alex asked.

"Hospital," she said, answering. "Hello? Yeah. What's her B.P.? Oh, crap. No, don't call Dr. Robbins. I'm coming."

"You're willing to work? On Christmas? Babe, you hate working on Christmas," Alex pointed out when she hung up.

"Yeah, but I told them to call me," Izzie said. "Arizona's got Sofia. Christmas morning isn't something a mommy should miss."

"So, what about when we have kids?"

"Um," she said, realizing his point, but still trying to think of something. "We hope somebody else steps up and becomes interested in Peds.?"

"Okay," he smiled.

"I'm sorry, Babe," she said, kissing him and licking her lips as just a little of the strawberry jam from his toast landed on them.

"No, it's fine. We're really not doing much until later," he said, a little disappointed that his proposal plan was now out the window. Oh, well. He could do it with their friends and family over too. Izzie may actually prefer that.

"Yeah," she replied.

"I'll come with you."

"You will? What about the turkey?"

"You think I can make a turkey? Plus, I haven't even seen a Peds. case in a long time."

"That's because you're not on Peds.," she laughed.

"Well, I could check on some of the babies in the NICU. Hopefully give some good updates to the parents. Make Christmas a little easier for them."

She smiled, thinking back to the Alex she had first met. Sure, his other side still make its appearances every now and then, but overall, Alex was a much more caring, considerate man.

"I love you."

"I love you, too," he said. "C'mon, Or," he said to the dog. "Let's go outside. We're leaving and you'll be alone for awhile."

"I should call your mom and see if she'll come over and start the turkey," Izzie said.

"Yeah."

"We'll be home by six, but I doubt we'll be home in enough time to put the turkey on."

"Exactly."

* * *

><p>By the time Alex and Izzie had woken up, Doctors Robbins, Sloan, Torres, and Montgomery had already been up for an hour and a half opening gifts with their girls and Sofia's grandparents.<p>

"What is it, Sofia?" Callie asked, watching the excitement come over Sofia's face as she opened a pink tea set from Grandma and Grandpa.

The almost two-year-old loved anything pretend these days. Her imagination was taking off, and toys like these were clearly her favourites. She also understood what Christmas was all about, which made it fun. No matter how many gifts she opened, she still gave the same thrilled reaction to each toy.

"Dink!" she said, leaving the R out of "drink."

"A tea set?" Mommy asked as she recorded the moment. "Show me. Hold it up."

Sofia tried to hold up the box, but it was too heavy. "Oof," she said, letting it down.

"Here," Daddy said, helping her out as Mommy and Madre recorded and took pictures. "Do you like it?"

"Yeah."

"What do you tell Grandma and Grandpa?" he asked.

"Ummm…"

"What do we say?"

"Gacias" she said, again leaving the R out.

"Oh, we're speaking Spanish today, huh?" Callie smiled. "But yes. Good manners, Sof."

"I'm glad you like it," Grandma Robbins smiled. "Mom told me you play with a tea set at daycare, so I thought you'd like one at home."

"Out?" she asked Daddy.

"I have to take that one out, too?" Mark asked.

So far, they had had to take almost every toy out of the box right away so that Sofia could play with it a little before moving on to the next one.

"Yeah."

"Yes…?" Arizona prompted.

"Pease," she finished.

"Fine," Mark said, opening the box.

"Give Grandpa the paper," Grandpa Robbins said. "I'll put it in the garbage."

"Dad, it's fine," Arizona said.

The disorganization and mess of Christmas morning had always bothered the military man. As children, Arizona and her brother were each assigned their own trash bag every year, into with they would throw their garbage as soon as everything was opened. Arizona had noticed his attempts to let it go and just enjoy watching Sofia open gifts, but apparently he could only take so much. The Colene did love Christmas, but he found it much more joyful when the mess was contained.

Sofia handed over a handful of Christmas wrap. "Thank you," he smiled, taking it from her.

"Sof, can we see what Licy got for Christmas?" Callie asked. "You can go help Licy open gifts."

"Oh!" the two-year-old replied, taking a piece from her tea set with her before getting up and going over to Addison and the baby.

"You're gonna help?" Addison asked her boyfriend's daughter. "Licy says thanks."

Sofia began digging into one of the bags. "Yay!" she cheered as she pulled out a package of pacifiers. "Out?" she asked, handing it to Addison.

"Sof, whose present is that?" Mark asked her.

"Baby," she answered.

"Are those yours then?"

"No."

"That's right," Callie said. "And big girls don't need those. Remember how we sent all of yours to Santa and told him to give them to little babies because you're so big now?"

Just to show her displeasure with this recent change in her life, Sofia put her thumb in her mouth. She hadn't been a thumb sucker until her pacifiers were taken away, but she figured it made a decent replacement.

"Oh, she's still so small," Barbara Robbins said.

"She's too big for pacifiers, Mom. She doesn't need them. The only reason she ever had one in the first place was for suck training in the NICU. Other than that, we weren't even planning on ever using them with her. Because we didn't want to end up with this problem," Arizona explained.

"Thumb out," Mark told Sofia. "No buck teeth for the plastic surgeon's kid, thank you."

Callie laughed. "Mark!"

"It's true!" he replied. "And we can't ship her thumb off to Santa next year."

Sofia giggled.

"You know that drives us nuts, huh?" Mark said, coming over and tickling her.

"Yep!" she laughed.

He kissed her. "Crazy girl!"

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><p><strong>Reviews = Updates<strong>


	3. Proposal and Potatoes

"Merry Christmas!" Izzie smiled as she Alex, George and Derek arrived back at the house.

"Smells great, Ma," Alex said, giving his mom a Christmas hug as he took in the wonderful scent of what would be Christmas dinner.

"Thanks for cooking, Anna," Izzie said.

"Not a problem."

"See?" George told his girlfriend as he kissed her. "I said I'd be off at four."

Carrie kissed him. "I stand corrected," she smiled.

"Oh!" Izzie said as she noticed the large pile of gifts. "I totally forgot about bringing Sofia and Felicity their –"

"Done," Carrie said. "Meredith, Cristina and I took care of it."

"Yep," Cristina replied as she took a sip of her wine. "And Sofia showed me the Christmas tree like four times. I don't even do Christmas."

Izzie smiled. "She doesn't know that," she said. "Plus, you're here."

"Food, wine, and free stuff," she justified. "Nothing having to do with Jesus."

Owen laughed. "Whatever. We're all here. That's what matters."

"Yep," Meredith nodded.

"Should we do gifts before or after dinner?" Tony asked.

Oreo barked. "Before?" Alex asked. "Okay."

"Oreo, this one's for you, Buddy!" Carrie said, finding a bag with a few dog toys under the tree. "From me and George."

Oreo ripped into the bag and quickly discovered the squeaky toys. "And Merry Christmas, everybody," Alex laughed. "This is what you'll be hearing until you leave."

"Fantastic," Cristina remarked.

"You're just havin' fun, huh?" Izzie asked.

He jumped up on her. "Are you happy Mom and Dad are home?" Meredith asked the black lab.

"We had to go to work," Izzie said. "But Daddy got to let a little baby go home for Christmas."

"Aw, yay," Carrie smiled. "That's awesome."

"Yeah," Alex agreed.

"What's that on the tree?" Izzie asked when she noticed something shiny that she hadn't put in it.

"Go check it out," Alex smiled.

Izzie got closer and pulled it off. "A ring?" she asked, looking up at Alex. "Aw, Babe!"

"I thought maybe we could call it an engagement ring," he suggested.

"Huh?"

"We had an awesome wedding day," he said. "But I'm thinking we could probably do better. With everybody there this time."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah," he said. "Will you marry me? Again?"

She giggled. "Yep," she nodded.

He went over to her, stepping through the pile of gifts and gave her a kiss. "I love you."

"So I get to plan a whole wedding?"

"You don't have Shepherd's credit cards this time," Alex said. "So take it easy. But yes."

"Can we afford the IVF and this? I know a lot of that is covered by the trial, but if it works, then we have to be able to afford a baby."

"I know," he smiled. "And yeah. We can. I've been thinking about this for awhile."

"If I do get pregnant, we have to do it before I'm waddling. A waddling bride just doesn't work."

Everybody laughed.

"Deal," her husband said as he took the chain from her, removed the ring, and placed it on her finger, taking off the tacky plastic wedding band she still wore to this day. "A real one," he said, knowing it didn't matter to her. But to him, it did.

* * *

><p>Felicity's little face was turning red as she cried and cried. Mommy was trying to settle her, but she wasn't having it.<p>

"Baby cry," Sofia said.

"The baby is crying," Addison said. "She's all done with Christmas I think."

"No."

"You aren't?" Mark asked.

"No."

"Well, Licy just wants a nap," Addison said as everybody else sat down at the table for dinner. "I'm gonna feed her and then I hope she sleeps."

"No."

"Not you, Sofia," Arizona said. "You can have dinner. Come sit."

"Gampa?" she asked.

"You want to sit next to me?" her grandfather asked. "Okay."

Arizona moved Sofia's booster seat over. "Come have a seat, my dear," she smiled.

"A see?" she asked.

"A seat," she nodded, lifting her into the chair. "Good?" she asked.

"Food?" she asked.

"Hold on," Callie said. "One second."

"Do you mind if I go in your room to nurse?" Addison asked.

"Go ahead," Callie nodded. "Sure."

The phone rang and Arizona answered it, knowing it was her father-in-law. "Merry Christmas," she told him as she put him on speaker.

"Merry Christmas," Carlos Torres replied.

"Oh!" Sofia gasped.

"Is that Abuelo?" Callie asked. "Say 'Merry Christmas!'"

"Baby cry," she said instead.

"What?" Abuelo asked.

"Her friend Felicity got a little fussy," Callie explained. "Merry Christmas, Dad."

"Did Santa come, Sofia?"

"Yeah!" Sofia said.

"Did he bring you good stuff?"

"Lot."

"Lots, she says," Arizona replied.

"Did you get my gift yet?"

"We got it yesterday," Callie nodded. "We loved it all. Right, Sofia?"

"Yep!" she nodded. "Food?"

"Abuelo, she's hungry," Callie explained. "We've gotta let you go."

"Okay."

"Food?" Sofia asked again.

"It's comin'," Mark promised. "Say 'bye' to Abuelo."

"Food?"

"One track mind," Arizona laughed, scooping mashed potatoes onto her daughter's plate. "Yum. There you go."

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><p><strong>Reviews = Updates <strong>


	4. The New Year

"New 'Ear!" Sofia shouted as she walked through the halls of Seattle Grace Mercy West on her way to daycare almost a week after New Years.

On New Years Eve, Daddy had shown his little girl how to blow into one of their noise makers and she had been doing it ever since.

Aunt Teddy laughed. "Happy New Year!" she told the little latina. "How was Christmas, Sofia?"

"Was Christmas good?" Callie asked her daughter.

"Yeah," she nodded.

"Good."

"You should've spent it with us," Arizona told her friend.

"Maybe next year," Teddy shrugged.

She had been invited to celebrate, of course, but Teddy just wasn't in the mood. Christmases just weren't happy without Henry and she didn't want to bring everyone else down. Therefore, she just wanted to spend the holiday alone. Arizona understood her point since she had felt similarly after Timothy passed away, but she still felt like Teddy could've come. They would've had a great time.

Sofia blew into the noise maker again "New 'Ear!" she yelled out.

Callie picked her up. "Shhh!" Callie told her, even though she was laughing. "Sofia, the people need sleep. Let's be quiet so they can all rest."

Sofia just blew it again. "Happy New Year!" Auntie Teddy said this time. "Yay!"

"Sof, you know that goes away when we get to your class, right?" Arizona warned.

"No," she said.

"Yes," Arizona told her. "That was our deal this morning."

"Oh."

"'Kay?" Callie asked.

"Yep," she nodded. She blew it again. "New 'Ear!"

"And you just might never see it again," Arizona decided. "It might go buh bye."

"You're mean," Teddy pouted. "She loves it!"

"A little too much," Callie laughed as they walked.

Sofia laughed.

Callie put Sofia down when they got to the door of her daycare classroom. "Oh, Sof, it looks like you're finger painting for craft today!" she said.

"Caf?" she asked.

"For craft," Callie nodded. "Look. Your friend Zane is paintin' a picture with his fingers."

"You have a friend who's a boy?" Auntie Teddy teased. "Oooo!"

Sofia laughed. "Zzzzane," she said, emphasizing the Z because she had just learned the proper pronunciation.

"Good morning, Sofia," one of the toddler room teachers, Miss Melanie, smiled as she noticed them walk in.

"Say 'hi,' Arizona said as she took Sofia's coat off while Madre signed her in. "And hand that over," she said, putting out her hand to take the noise maker.

Sofia did, but before it was out of sight, she kissed it. "It needed a kiss?" Callie smiled.

"Yeah."

"Sofia, we're finger painting," Melanie told her. "Do you want to make a craft today?"

"Yeah," she nodded.

"Sounds good," she said.

Arizona put Sofia's coat and bag into her little cubby. "Can Madre and I have kisses first?"

Sofia kissed Callie, then Arizona, and finally Teddy. "I get one, too?" Teddy asked. "Thanks, Hun."

"Daddy's picking her up tonight," Callie told the teacher.

"Okay," Melanie nodded.

Sofia waved at her moms and her aunt. She was used to going to daycare now, so the tears they were once met with daily only happened on her crabbiest of days now. Teachers like Melanie and friends like Zane helped make going to "school" fun now.

"Have a good day, Sof," Callie smiled. "We love you."

"Lot?" she asked.

"Lots and lots," Arizona nodded. "So much!"

* * *

><p>"What do you think of these?" Izzie asked her husband when they ended up having a few minutes together at work that morning.<p>

"Of what?" he asked as she handed over a magazine full of various wedding detail ideas.

"The centerpieces with the box. Those boxes can have pictures of us on all four sides, and flowers can still go in the middle. Which is cool, because once the flowers die, the boxes can still be reused."

"By who? We know what we look like. They're our pictures."

"Somebody from each table can take it home and replace the pictures or something. With their own."

"Isn't that what the favours are for?"

"We could do both. Like you said, why do we need to keep all those centerpieces?"

"Can we pick a date, please?" he asked. "Preferably one soon? So this planning can end?"

"You're the one that wanted to do it all again," she said, kissing him.

"I know," he smiled. "And I'm glad you're so happy and all that. But I couldn't give a crap what's on the tables. As long as we get hitched and you look hot, I'm good."

"Centerpieces are pretty, though," she said. "And my wedding has to be pretty."

"Okay."

"Oreo's not allowed to be the ring bearer, is he?" Izzie asked.

"Izzie, they're not gonna let a dog run around a church."

"Excellent point," she said. "I'm going to ask if Sofia can be the flower girl. And maybe Tuck can be ring bearer?"

"Okay," he nodded.

"Tony's your best man, right?"

"Yep."

"Your mom's already said yes to being my Maid of Honour. And Carrie's begging to be a bridesmaid. Not that she even has to."

He laughed.

"So, what did you think of this morning?" she asked him, finally bringing up the elephant in the room.

They had had their first meeting with their fertility specialist, Dr. Jareau earlier. It had gone well. She had even said that they were one step ahead of most of her patients because they already had embryos and didn't have to worry about whether or not any healthy eggs remained.

"I like her," Alex said. "And I can't believe that we're starting this whole thing in two weeks."

"You are excited, right?"

He smiled. "Yep."

"Good," she said. "I worked with a little boy named Tyler today. What do you think of -?"

"No names," he replied. "No jinxing it."

"You believe in that?"

"No, but we'll have forty weeks for that when you do get knocked up. That's long enough."

She smiled. "Okay, Daddy."

"Without the kid, that just sounds dirty."

"Ew," she replied. "Okay. No. But do you realize I could be pregnant by your birthday?"

"Yeah," he smiled. "Hopefully."

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews = Updates<strong>


	5. Big Girls

Izzie wasn't pregnant by Alex's birthday. She wasn't even pregnant by her own. It was now July and their first three IVF attempts had failed. Of the twelve embryos they originally had, they were now only left with five. One had died off before implantation, and six had been used.

They were definitely beginning to get discouraged, but they weren't giving up. They had learned a long time ago that God had plans – something that Alex had a hard time embracing at first – they just didn't understand sometimes. For some reason, it just wasn't their time to be parents yet.

"More wedding plans?" Arizona smiled as she saw Izzie looking through yet another magazine.

"Question," Izzie said.

"What?"

"If you and Callie were to get remarried, would you still wear a traditional gown, or would you go for something a little less formal? You know, more sexy and fun?"

"Traditional," she said. "That's the best part of a wedding. You can wear a pretty dress anywhere. You can only wear a wedding dress at a wedding."

"True," Izzie nodded, seeing her boss' point.

"I have a patient who's asking for you," she said.

"You do?" she asked.

"Izzie, it's Hannah," she said, not sure how to break the news gently.

"The cancer's back?"

She nodded. "Her oncologist caught it early this time, but we're gonna put another port in and then she'll start chemo and radiation."

"Okay," she said, trying not to burst into tears.

"You need anything, Stevens?"

"I just wish I could donate bone marrow again," she said. "Last time, it worked."

"You can't," Arizona said.

The fact that Izzie herself was in remission made this impossible.

"I'm supposed to be able to save her from this," she said, tearing up.

Even though Izzie hadn't said a word to her daughter in fifteen years now, she still very much felt like a mother. She may not have raised her girl, but they didn't mean that the mother's love she had in her heart ever went away.

"She wants to see you," Arizona said.

"Seriously?" Izzie asked, getting a tissue and wiping her tears away. "Last time, she hadn't been –"

"She asked if you still worked here and her parents said it was okay for her to meet you," Arizona explained. "And just by the look in your eyes right now, I can tell this is a moment you've been waiting years for."

"I have to find a way to hold it together," she agreed. "For her."

Izzie was a huge believer in the power that positive energy had when it came to healing. She credited it with her own recovery, and now she was going to do all she possibly could for Hannah. She didn't want the first conversation she'd have with her girl since the one they had when Hannah was just a couple days old to be a sad one. That probably wasn't going to do Hannah any good.

"Take a minute," Arizona nodded. "But she's excited to meet you."

Izzie smiled. At least that was bringing Hannah joy today, even if everything else was so scary.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Mark was at home for the day with Sofia. He had worked all night, so he was thankful that his daughter had decided it was a good idea to cooperate and take a nap today, so he could take one too.<p>

However, Daddy could only have it so good. His now twenty-seven and a half month old walked into his room and woke him up.

"Hi, Dada?" she asked. "You nap?"

"Uh huh," he nodded, knowing he'd now have to get up with her, but not exactly ready to do so. "I'm nappin'."

"Seepy?" she asked.

"Wait," he replied. "You're out of your crib."

"Go out," she nodded.

"I knew this was coming," Mark replied.

They had been putting off moving Sofia from a crib to a toddler bed because she seemed happy in the crib and it was still working well for them. She wasn't too old for it just yet, in their opinion. All that had just changed.

"Big girl!" Sofia said, proud of herself.

Mark got out of bed. He couldn't help but smile when he saw the giant grin on his daughter's little face. "You think you did good, huh?"

"Yeah," she said. "Go potty."

"You have to go potty?" he asked.

"No, Dada," she replied. "Come pay."

"Let's go potty," he said, taking her by her little hand.

"No."

He yawned. "Daddy's very sleepy and he'd love it if you'd just be a good listener. Okay?"

"Gooo potty," she replied slowly nodding as they walked into the bathroom.

It was then that Mark noticed what Sofia was trying to tell him. She didn't have to go potty. She already had. The Pull-Up she had been wearing was on the floor in a puddle of urine.

"Oh, Sofia…" he simply said.

He couldn't exactly be mad. Sofia had tried her best to use the potty. Her independence had just happened to create a bigger mess.

"Pee!" she exclaimed.

"You're just so big now, huh?" he asked as he picked up the Pull-Up. "Why couldn't you do all this big girl stuff at Madre and Mommy's?"

"Wuv Dada."

"You love me?" he smiled. "I love you, too."

"'Ticka?" she asked, requesting the sticker that she was supposed to receive each time she went potty.

"You tried to get it in the potty, huh?" he asked. "Next time, tell Daddy when you have to go pee, though."

"Ohhhh…"

"This big girl independence thing doesn't work so well for Daddy."

"Dada?" she asked.

"Yeah?"

"'Fia help?"

"No, Baby," he smiled. "Thank you, though."

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews = Updates<strong>


	6. Something's Gotta Give

**A/N: Yes, I'm aware that Hannah's mom's name is Caroline. I changed it to Carol for this fic because, in this case, Carrie's name is short for Caroline. Let's all go with it, shall we? :)**

* * *

><p>"Mark just sent me a video of Sofia trying to climb out of her crib," Callie said. "I guess she got out earlier and now she thinks it's a fun game."<p>

"Uh huh," Arizona nodded, picking at her salad.

"That's all you have to say?" she asked. "I thought you'd freak out. Or be excited. Or…react."

"I had to tell Izzie her fifteen-year-old has cancer for the second time."

"Oh."

"So Sofia climbing out of her crib doesn't really seem like a huge deal right now. I mean, it is, but we just get a toddler bed. At least she's healthy."

"Yeah," Callie nodded. "You okay?"

"Before we had Sofia, I didn't take it so personally. Now it scares me half to death. I mean, I know we almost lost her, but we didn't. Thank God. And if anything like what's happening to Hannah happened to Sof-"

"She's fine," Callie said.

"I know," she replied.

"But yeah," Callie nodded. "It's scary."

"Hannah should be enjoying her summer," she said. "Instead, she's asking her oncologist questions about her chemo schedule. It's not…some days I don't know why I do this."

"For the good days," Callie said. "For the days that we get to tell people they're not dying. For the lives we save."

"Some days it feels like we just don't get enough of those days."

"Yep," Callie agreed. "But you have to admit that going home to our perfect baby girl helps."

"Well, yeah."

"So tonight, we're gonna go home, get her, and go pick out a big girl bed, Mommy."

She smiled. "Sounds good," she said.

"Good."

"And Hannah'll be okay."

"I really hope so. I mean, Izzie's been through so much."

"Yeah."

"I know she hasn't always been your favourite person, but she has."

"Oh, I know."

"Alex told me they're trying and they've had no luck so far."

"Oh."

"Izzie hasn't mentioned it and it's not really my business, so I haven't said anything, but I mean it seems like everything's hard for them."

"Nobody's life can suck like that forever," Callie said. "Something's gotta give."

"True."

* * *

><p>Izzie didn't go into Hannah's room right away. The conversation she and her daughter were about to have was such a huge one that, even though she had been waiting years and years for it, she was suddenly terrified too. What if she said the wrong thing and made Hannah hate her?<p>

When she went and talked to Alex about it, he convinced her that, if Hannah was the one asking to meet her, it would probably go well. This calmed his wife some and she was ready for the biggest meeting of her life.

"Hi," she smiled, walking into Hannah's room. "I'm Izzie."

"I know," Hannah smiled.

"Right," Izzie chuckled.

"We'll give you a minute," Hannah's dad, Dustin, told them as he and his wife Carol went to leave the room.

"You don't have to –" Izzie started to say.

"It's okay," Carol said as they left.

"They're starving and I can't eat yet, so they want to go get food anyway," Hannah said, wanting Izzie to know that it wasn't that she made them uncomfortable.

Izzie sat down next to her daughter's bed. "Oh," she replied. "So…" she said, not really knowing what should come next.

"My parents always told me I was adopted," Hannah said. "From day one. But they told me that you loved me, too."

"I do," Izzie nodded.

"I know," she said. "I've had times when I didn't really want to be adopted because I was sick of people asking me about my 'real' mom. Which, my mom is my 'real' mom."

"Right," Izzie nodded.

"But the older I've gotten, the more I've realized that it's okay. And I've really wanted to meet you."

Izzie smiled.

"Not that it makes my parents any less my parents," she said. "But knowing where I come from would be cool, too. My parents told me what they knew, but still. Every quirky little habit I have, I wonder if I get it from you or my birth dad. My friends get to know that stuff and I want to, too."

"I've been hoping you'd feel just like you do," Izzie told her. "I wanted you to feel like a part of your family. I picked your parents for you and I think they're pretty great. But I always hoped you'd want to know about me, too. I hoped you'd understand why I did what I did and not hate me."

"I don't hate you," she said. "Nope."

"Good," she said as her teenager just looked at her. "What?"

"Sorry," she replied. "It's just really cool that I have your eyes."

Izzie smiled again. "You do," she said.

Their conversation was interrupted by Hannah's ringing cellphone. Her friends just wanted to call and tell Hannah they were thinking about her.

"Sorry about that," she apologized as she hung up.

"Don't worry about it. Sounds like you have some really awesome friends."

"Yep," she nodded.

"Good."

"I just wish I could go to school with them in the fall," she said.

"Well, some days you can," she told her. "It'll be just like last time. You won't have to be stuck in here every day."

"I'll still be here too often," she said.

"I know," she replied. "Did you know I'm in remission?"

"You are?"

"Yep," she nodded. "So, I know it sucks. But I also know that the doctors here are some of the best I've ever seen. You're in great hands. I know it's still scary, but…"

"Yeah," Hannah said. "And at least now when I'm here I can hang out with you."

"Yep," Izzie smiled, doing her best to hold back both the happy and sad tears.

Izzie went away from that conversation feeling a major sense of relief. Of course, she was still very worried about Hannah, but it felt good to know that the now teenager wanted to know her. She knew there would be boundaries because she wasn't Hannah's mom, but she couldn't wait to build some sort of relationship with her girl. Hopefully visits from Izzie would help Hannah through some of those rough days.

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews = Updates<strong>


	7. Wants

**A/N: This one's a little on the short side, but it just didn't feel like it needed to be longer.**

* * *

><p>"Why do we still have this lying around?" Arizona asked as she used her knee to force the pieces of Sofia's crib back into the closet when she opened it one day in September. "Let's get rid of it already."<p>

"Yeah," Sofia, who was playing on Mommy and Madre's bed while her moms got ready for work agreed.

"No more crib, right?" Arizona asked. "Big girls don't need cribs and all we've got here is big girls!"

"I just can't get rid of it," Callie replied. "Just in case."

"Just in case what? I go to Africa and you -?"

"No," she said. "In case we have another one. We could, you know."

"You want another one?" she asked.

"Arizona, I'd have as many as humanly possible if I could convince you," she said. "I'd love another one."

Mark walked into the apartment. "Where's my Sof?" he asked.

Sofia got down off the bed. "Dada and Licy!" the two-and-a-half-year old exclaimed as she ran into the living room and saw them there.

"You ready for school?" he asked.

"Licy go too today?" she wondered.

In Sofia's mind, the fifteen-month-old was pretty much her little sister. She was starting to want to involve Addison's daughter in everything.

"Yeah," Mark nodded. "Addie's already at work. I've gotta bring Licy, so I thought I'd stop and pick you up on the way. Save your mommies some time."

"Ohhh…"

Callie walked out into the living room. "Hey," Callie said. "I thought -?"

"I have to bring her in, so I thought I'd just come get Sof, too."

"Hi," Felicity said.

"Hey, Licy," she smiled. "How are you today?"

"Are you happy?" Mark asked. "Well, you weren't when Mommy left, but hanging out with Daddy wasn't too bad, was it?"

Felicity had started calling Mark "Daddy" all on her own. Of course, it was a role he was more than happy to fill in her life. He and Addison were doing better than ever and he loved their little family.

"Dada fun," Sofia told Felicity.

"I'm fun?"

Yeah," she nodded.

"Go get your backpack and we'll go to school."

"Oh," she said.

"It's in your room," Callie reminded her.

"Yep!" she said as she walked off.

"I think I just freaked Arizona out," Callie told her best friend.

"Why?"

"We've got Sof's crib in our closet and I mentioned that I wanna keep it and have another baby."

"She's not so onboard?"

"Not so much."

"Go for the sibling angle," Mark suggested. "Sofia loves being a sister. Point that out. Robbins is a great mom. She'll probably come around."

"I just never thought I'd have one kid. But I want Arizona to really want more."

"Yeah."

* * *

><p>"So, how many embryos are we transferring this month?" Izzie asked her husband as they changed before their shifts. "We've had no success with two. Maybe if we go with three…?"<p>

They still had the same five embryos left that they had back in July and they were ready to try again. They were just nervous that it still wouldn't work.

"Two," Alex said. "Three's too risky."

"What's the risk? That we get pregnant?" she asked. "Babe, that's the goal."

"With three, we risk multiples."

"And we reduce if we have to," she said, putting her scrub top on.

"Easier said then done," Alex replied. "Once we see little heartbeats and all that, after how hard we've tried, reduction isn't gonna seem so great."

"True," she said. "I hate how you think about everything."

He kissed her. "You love me and you know it."

"If two doesn't work this time, we'll only be left with three."

"I know."

"That's not a lot."

"Nope," he said. "But it only takes one."

"Yep," she agreed.

"Hey, how's Hannah been?"

"I didn't get a chance to go see her yesterday or the day before, but she sent me an email saying she's going home today."

"Good."

"Yeah," she nodded. "She's gonna try to go to school on Monday."

"Awesome."

"You're sure we can't just transfer three?"

"Babe…"

"Okay," she said. "Fine. But I better have a kid in my uterus soon."

"You will," he smiled.

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews = Updates<strong>


	8. Baking and Baby Making

Izzie didn't get pregnant in September. In usual Izzie fashion, she threw herself deep into two things – wedding planning and baking. The wedding date was set for March second, but, in the meantime, Halloween goodies needed to made.

She threw a little baking party a few days before the event and had some of her favourite ladies over to help her bake. Anna, Carrie, Addison, Callie, Arizona, Sofia, and Felicity thought it sounded like fun. Some of the goodies would be given out to the patients on the Pediatric ward, Carrie would be taking some to the school she taught at, and there was no doubt that Sofia and Felicity would gobble up the rest.

"Back away from the cookies," Callie told her little girl after Sofia picked her nose. "That's gross, Sof."

"Boogie, Maday," Sofia said.

"Yeah," Callie grimaced. "Let's go find a Kleenex for your boogies."

"Otay," she agreed as Callie carried her away.

"She's too cute," Anna smiled.

"Thanks," Arizona replied. "I might be a little biased, but I personally think she's the most awesome kid ever."

Felicity, who was perched on the countertop wearing just her diaper and playing with a bowl filled with water and food colouring to keep her entertained, began babbling loudly. She did speak, but most of the time, the babbling they couldn't make much sense of still remained.

"Licy disagrees," Addison said, giving her girl a kiss. "Huh? But your sister is pretty awesome."

Izzie laughed. As much as it hurt not to have her own babies, she did love spending time with the girls. They always made her feel a little bit better and made her realize that trying so hard would be worth it. It was tough, but the end result is what they had to hold onto.

"You girls are too funny," she said.

"Question," Arizona told Izzie. "If you don't wanna talk about it, you don't have to, but I've been meaning to ask."

"What?"

"What specialist have you and Alex been seeing?"

"Jareau," she answered. "Are you and Callie trying?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "Right now, we're still picking out a donor, but once that's done, Calliope's gonna be pretty anxious."

"Anxious about what?" Callie asked as she brought Sofia back into the kitchen and started washing the toddler's hands.

"Bubble!" Sofia giggled as the soap bubbled up.

"Baby number two," Arizona said.

"Yeah."

"Picking a donor is so hard, huh?" Addison asked. "When I picked her donor, I was literally asking coworkers."

"We basically have one picked," Callie said.

"You do?" Addison asked.

"We do?" Arizona repeated.

"Oh, come on," Callie laughed. "If you were straight, he'd be my replacement. You love him."

"I kinda do," she admitted. "I just think he's a great mix of the two of us. I love that he's in the military. And that he's a quarter Cuban, so Baby'll have some latin blood."

"If we use your egg, Baby'll less than a quarter of Baby's overall heritage will be latin," Callie pointed out.

"Still," Arizona said. "I think it's cool."

"You'll carry her baby?" Carrie asked. "Biologically, I mean?"

"That's the plan," Callie nodded.

"That's kind of cool," Izzie said.

"Yeah."

"Hopefully we'll have lots more babies around here soon, huh?" Carrie asked Sofia.

"Yep," she nodded, not having a clue what she was talking about.

"God, I hope so."

"It's gonna happen for you," Arizona told Izzie.

"And miracle babies are the best kind. Right, Sofia?" Callie asked, kissing her daughter.

"More cookie?" Sofia asked.

"Let's make more cookies," she nodded. "Wanna make ghost cookies?"

"Those scary."

"They're nice ghosts," Anna said.

"Ohh…"

* * *

><p>"Everybody keeps telling me it'll happen for us," Izzie told her husband as they lay on the couch that night watching T.V.<p>

"Because it will."

"What if it just…doesn't?"

"We don't have to have a biological kid, Babe," Alex said. "There are tons of ways to make families."

"I'm a birth mom. I know adoption's great," she told him. "I just never thought Hannah might be the only baby I ever get to carry."

"I know."

"Do you think that's why?"

"Since when you do regret placing Hannah for adoption, Babe?" he asked.

"I don't," Izzie said. "But I don't know, what if that's why?"

"God's not punishing you for giving your girl a better life, if that's what you mean."

"Sometimes it feels like it."

"Well, that's not how God works," Alex said. "Who knows what's in store for us. I've kind of given up on knowing how all that works. We just have to go with what we have."

"I know."

"But we will be parents," Alex said. "One way or another."

"I hope you're right."

"I'm never wrong."

"Right," she chuckled.

"We'll try again next month, okay?"

"I know the routine," she nodded.

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews = Updates<strong>


	9. Early Christmas Gift

Addison had worked all night last night, so Mark brought the girls up to the floor to see her really quickly before they went to daycare.

"Pity," Sofia said, pointing to Addison's shoes.

"Are my shoes pretty?" Addison asked. "Thanks! I like them a lot."

"Yeah," she nodded.

"Thanks."

Alex walked up. "Sorry to interrupt, but you paged me?"

"Hi," Felicity told him.

"Hey," he smiled. "How are you today?"

"Good," Sofia said. "How you?"

"Alex is having a really good day," Addison said.

"I am?" he asked. "What's 'really' good about it?"

She handed him a piece of paper. "I just got this referral."

It was from Dr. Jareau's office and it had his wife's name on it. "Iz is pregnant?" he asked. After trying so hard, it seemed unreal. Being December second, this made the perfect early Christmas gift, though.

"Congratulations," she nodded. "Jareau knew Izzie wanted me to be her OB, so she just went ahead and sent everything. I don't think her office is open yet, meaning Iz didn't get the call yet. Go tell her, Dad."

"Dada?" Felicity asked, pointing a pudgy finger at Mark.

"I am your daddy," he nodded. "Alex and Izzie are gonna have a baby!"

"Yeah?" Sofia asked.

"We are," Alex smiled. "Are you girls ready for a little friend?"

"Sof fendy."

"You're friendly?" Mark asked. "Yes, you are."

* * *

><p>"So, I saw this doll house online that we have to get Sofia," Callie was telling her wife just before rounds on the Pediatric ward.<p>

Callie had been on-call, so they hadn't seen each other until now and she was using these few minutes to catch up before she got paged away. "For Christmas?"

"How much is it?"

"That's the thing," she said.

"Calliope…"

"Eighty-nine, ninety-nine," she answered.

"Ninety bucks?" she replied. "Callie, we could get her so many other things for that price. A two-year-old doesn't need a toy that expensive. Especially since we just did IVF and that isn't exactly cheap. Her Christmas'll still be perfect without the doll house."

"So, ask Mark?"

"Callie, she's not even three!"

"I grew up with rich parents, okay?"

"I grew up with normal kid toys," she said. "And I loved them. Just like Sofia does."

"Stevens!" Callie called out, seeing Izzie coming.

"What?" Izzie asked.

"When you and Karev have kids, how much would you spend on one gift? It's not about price, is it?"

"Well, I'm not her mom, but I ordered Hannah's gift this morning," Izzie said. "It's like forty bucks."

"See?" Arizona asked. "Ninety is a little too excessive."

"I'll go find Mark," Callie pouted.

"Yes, you will," Arizona replied.

Alex got off the elevator. "Iz!" he called out.

"What?" she asked.

"Guess what's we'll be doing next Halloween?"

"Halloween? Babe, it's Christmas time."

"Go with Halloween."

"Fine," she said. "What will we be doing next Halloween?"

"Oh," he replied. "Only having a kid."

"How do you know?" she asked, her eyes lighting up.

"Jareau sent Montgomery the referral last night."

"Yay!"

"Congratulations," Arizona said.

She was finding the few more days that they had to wait for Callie's blood test to be excruciatingly long. Yet, seeing Alex and Izzie's happiness gave her something to look even more forward to.

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews = Updates<strong>


	10. Keeping Busy

Izzie wanted to come up with a creative way to announce her pregnancy, but when she found out that the IVF had finally worked she was just too excited to wait to share the happy news.

"So everybody knows, huh?" Alex asked when he came home that night to find her decorating their living room for Christmas.

She laughed. "Did they call you?"

"First my mom, then Carrie, then Tony," he smiled. "And Bailey, George, Webber, and Hunt all congratulated me before I went home today."

She smiled. "We're actually having a baby!" she beamed, giving him a kiss. "In thirty-eight weeks or so, we'll have a child, Alex! An actual, perfect, amazing baby."

He smiled. "I know," he said, wrapping his arms around his wife's waist. "You're gonna be a mommy. And I'm gonna be a daddy."

"That's the point, Babe."

"I know," he said. "But it sorta seemed like it wasn't going to happen."

"You kept saying it would. One way or another, remember?"

"It's just what you say," he said. "You don't tell your infertile wife that you doubt she'll ever pop out a kid."

"Well, thank you for lying to me, I guess," she said with a little chuckle. "Because it worked!"

"Yep."

Oreo came over to them, wagging his tail. He was happy to see Alex home. "What do you think of the baby, Oreo?"

"You're gonna love it, huh?" Alex asked, reaching down to pet the pup. "You love Tuck, and Sofia,and Felicity, right?"

He barked. "Is that a yes?" Izzie laughed.

"That's a 'whatever, can I have my dinner now?'" Alex answered.

"Let's go put something yummy in that bowl," Izzie said, heading toward the kitchen.

Alex looked around the living room. Izzie had always gone all out when it came to decorating for Christmas, but this year there seemed to be even more decorations.

"Babe…?" he asked.

"Yeah?" she called out as she gave Oreo his food.

"Did you go get more decorations?" he asked as he joined her in the kitchen.

"Kind of," she nodded. "I was buying wool so that I could make Baby a pair of booties, and while I was at the store, I saw a few more ornaments and a Santa shaped candy dish."

He smiled. The amount of Christmas cheer in his living room was usually way too much for Alex Karev, but not this year. This year there was so much to celebrate. This Christmas would be a great one, and the Christmas after that – their baby's first – would be absolutely perfect.

"Time is going to go by really slow, isn't it?" Alex asked.

"When I was pregnant with Hannah, it felt like everything was moving way too fast. But I think that's because I was wishing so badly that it would crawl so that I could just…keep her. Not keep her, keep her, but just have more time with her."

"Right."

"But I have a feeling that this time it won't feel like it's going by so fast," Izzie agreed. "It's the whole watched pot thing. Thirty-eight weeks'll feel like thirty-eight years."

"Yep."

"We'll keep busy," she said. "That's one thing surgeons don't have a problem doing."

"Very true."

"Thank God."

"Yep."

* * *

><p>Callie, Arizona, and Sofia were keeping busy as well. However, their reasoning wasn't quite as happy. Unlike Izzie and Alex, they got some disappointing news that month. They were not having a baby just yet. They knew that it was normal for IVF not to work every time, so they were trying not to harp on it much. They would enjoy Christmas with Sofia and hope to have better luck come the new year.<p>

"Sofia Robbin Sloan…" Callie called, trying to get her little girl to come into her and Arizona's room.

"Go see my Sata," she asked, coming into the room.

"We are going to go see your Santa," she nodded. "As soon as Mommy comes home."

"And Daddy?" she asked.

"Nope," Callie said. "Daddy and Addie had to work. So they're gonna bring you and Licy to see Santa this next week."

"Yep?"

"That's what Daddy said," she answered. "You get to see Santa twice!"

"Sata wuv Fia."

"He loves you?" she asked.

"Get peasants."

"You do get presents from him," she said. "So he must love you, right?"

"Fia wub him lot."

"Oh, you're such a sweet girl."

The ride to the mall felt pretty long. Sofia was so excited to see her buddy Santa that she kept telling mommy to hurry up. There was only so many times that hearing that was cute. After awhile, they really wished she would stop saying it, because they knew she knew it was not nice to demand such a thing.

"We're here, Sofia!" Arizona said, taking a picture as they stood in the line.

"My Sata!" she pointed, trying to get ahead in line.

"We need to wait," Callie said, taking a Santa hat out of her bag to distract her daughter some. "Okay?"

"Otay,"she nodded.

"Thanks, big girl!"

To no one's surprise, Sofia loved sitting on Santa's lap. She got her picture taken with him and then chatted his ear off. Luckily the line wasn't too long at that point, so she could.

"Sata…?"

"Yes?" he asked.

"Fia wub you," she told him.

"You love me?" he asked. "You're such a nice girl!"

"Give Fia peasants," she said.

"Please," Arizona added, with a chuckle.

"Pease."

"It's nice to be polite, huh?" Santa told her. "I like to spoil polite girls."

"Oh!" Callie said. "Santa's gonna bring you good stuff if you're polite."

"Sata…?" Sofia smiled.

"Yes?"

"Fia be back," she said.

"Sofia's coming back with her sister Felicity," Arizona explained.

"I get to see you twice this year?" he asked. "Oh, Santa's so happy! And tell Felicity I can't wait to see her."

Sofia gasped. "He wike Licy!" she told her moms.

"Of course I do! I'm Santa!" he said.

* * *

><p>"How was Santa?" Mark asked when he stopped by to see Sofia for a few minutes before her bedtime.<p>

"He wike Fia," she said. "Licy too!"

"He likes you and Licy?" he asked. "Well, yeah!"

"Sofia told Santa she's coming back with Licy," Arizona said. "Huh?"

"Yep."

"Felicity's gonna be so excited," Mark said. "Or she'll scream her little head off. Either one."

"No," Sofia answered.

"She won't?" Callie asked.

"Sata no mean."

"Santa's not mean?" she asked. "Nope!"

"He nice."

"He is," Mark nodded.

"What does he say, Sof?" Arizona asked.

"Ho, ho,ho!" she yelled.

"And…?"

"A Cismas."

"I think that's Merry Christmas?" Callie asked.

"Yeah!" she said.

"Right," she nodded. "Are you excited for Christmas?"

"Yeah!" she giggled.

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	11. Awesome Holidays

"You're gonna have to tell her at some point," Alex told his wife as she stood outside her daughter's room watching Hannah read. The teenager hadn't looked up from her book to see them there.

Hannah had been the only person who Izzie had not excitedly told of her pregnancy. She didn't know why, because she had always known she'd have more children someday, but she was feeling nervous about what Hannah's reaction would be. She didn't want her to think for a second that this new baby would be her replacement in her birth mom's eyes.

"I know."

"She'll be happy, Babe."

"Do you really think that?"

"Iz, you were sixteen when she was born," he said. "She gets that you weren't ready then. She'll get that you are now."

Izzie moved toward the door and knocked. Hannah looked up. "Hey," she said.

"Hi," Izzie replied. "Can we come in?"

"Yep," she nodded. "My parents are meeting with the oncologist," she told them as they sat down beside her bed. "Trying to see if there's any way I can get out of here for Christmas. I know I'll be back for my next round, but still. And we have no real Christmas plans because I'm in here, but –"

"I get it," Izzie smiled.

"Are you guys working the holidays?"

"Nope," Alex said. "Today's our last day for a couple days, unless something comes up."

"Yeah."

"Hannah, we have something to tell you," Izzie said.

"What?" Hannah asked.

"We're, um…we're gonna have a baby."

A smile grew over Hannah's face. "Really?"

"Yep," Izzie nodded.

"Congratulations!"

"Thanks," she said.

"When are you due?"

"September twenty-second. Which according to Alex, is Halloween."

"It's around Halloween," he defended. "If you're a little late, it'll be an October baby."

"You want me overdue? I think we've waited long enough for this kid."

"I'm telling you. October baby."

Hannah laughed.

"You're really happy for us?" Izzie asked.

"Yeah," she said. "You thought I wouldn't be?"

"I just didn't know if you'd think it was weird."

"Nope," Hannah said. "I mean…just because you didn't keep me doesn't mean that you shouldn't get to be a mom."

"I'm so glad you see it that way."

"And plus, I get a sibling," she replied. "Sort of."

"Yeah," Izzie said.

Clearly the relationship her children shared would be a unique one, but they would know each other.

* * *

><p>"Sofia's gonna love it," Mark smiled.<p>

Arizona had just told him that Callie's dad was planning to fly in tonight and be there for Christmas Eve morning. This year, because Arizona, Mark, and Addison all had to work on Christmas, they would be opening gifts the morning before instead. Luckily their girls were young enough not to really care that this was different. They had been told Santa would be coming early, and that was good enough for them.

This would also be the first year that Sofia's abuelo would be with them. He always tried hard to be a part of their celebration from afar – sending gifts and calling each year – but now he was actually going to be there in person.

"Yeah," Arizona nodded. "Having him and my parents there is gonna be awesome."

"Does Sof know yet?"

"Callie wants to surprise her," Arizona said.

"Yeah?" Eighteen-month-old Felicity asked.

"Yep!" Arizona nodded.

"Don't tell Sister, okay?" Mark told her, knowing that there was no way she would.

"Yeah," Felicity giggled.

"No!" he replied.

"What's so funny over here?" Addison asked, coming up.

"She says she's gonna tell Sister that her abuelo's coming."

"No, you won't!" Addison smiled, tickling her toddler. "Santa's coming tonight. Just for you and Sof! For everybody else, he comes tomorrow!"

"Mama?" she asked, reaching for Addison.

"All you want is Mom, huh?" Arizona asked. "You're such a sweet girl."

"She is," Addison agreed, taking Felicity into her arms. She kissed her light blond hair. "I missed you this morning."

"Yeah?"

"Yep! I was busy helping a mommy have a baby."

"Oh."

"Are you my baby?"

"Yeah," she nodded, resting her head against Mom's shoulder.

"Stop getting big, 'kay?"

"You think she's big?" Arizona asked. "Sofia's gonna turn three soon. Three! How did that even happen?"

"Oh, you and Callie'll have another one before you know it," Mark said.

"I hope so," Arizona said. "But look how long it took Alex and Izzie."

"True."

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><p>"What do you think Baby is?" Izzie asked as they laid in bed that night. Alex's hand was on her belly.<p>

"A girl."

"I think so, too," she admitted. "Not that a boy wouldn't be awesome, too. But just…this one's a girl."

"Plus, the whole father-son relationship thing…it's just not gonna be my thing."

"Aw, Babe," Izzie said, giving him a kiss. "Just because your dad wasn't any good doesn't mean you'll be like that."

"I know, but still. I don't know how to have those father-son moments."

"If it's a boy, you'll figure it out," she promised him. "And our baby, boy or girl, is lucky to have you."

"Thanks," he smiled.

"But I'm still convinced it's a girl."

"You know what name I've always thought was nice for a girl?"

"What?"

"Mia."

Izzie wrinkled her nose up and shook her head.

"No Mia?" he asked.

"No Mia," she said.

"Why?"

"It means something about bitterness," she said.

"How do you know that?"

"When I was naming Hannah, I came across it. I just remember thinking that it was a really unfortunate meaning. I wanted something happy for her."

"You named her?"

"No," she said. "But I picked a name. Sarah," she explained, wondering why she'd never told him this part of the story before. "My case worker suggested maybe giving her a name from me would bring closure. Technically, I could've put it on the birth certificate and they could've changed it later. But I wanted it to be just between her and I. Sarah means princess. That's a much, much better meaning than bitterness. To me, Hannah's adoption wasn't bitter. Sure, it was hard, but I knew she was happy, and healthy, and going to have this great life with her mom and dad."

"Yeah," he smiled. "But really, do people even know what most names mean? Mia's nice."

"I'm sure we can find a much more fitting name, Daddy."

"Okay," he agreed.

"But for tonight, maybe we could just sleep?"

"You tired?"

"And a little nauseous."

"Oh."

"It's worth it," she said. "No big deal."

"Yeah."

"Hey, do you think your family would care if we invite Hannah and her parents for Christmas? She was discharged today and they have no family in town and no plans."

"They'd love to meet her, I'm sure."

"Okay."

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><p>Sofia was fast asleep by the time Abuelo arrived that night, but he woke her up the next morning. It was only Christmas Eve, but according to Sofia, Santa had come the night before because it worked out better that way for her parents.<p>

"Sofia…" he whispered as he made his way into her room.

"Sata?" she asked, opening her eyes.

"Not Santa," Callie smiled as she recorded the moment. She slowly turned on the light.

"'Buelo!" she smiled.

"Hi!" he smiled.

"Abuelo came for Christmas this year," Arizona explained.

"Are you excited?" Callie asked as her daughter hugged him.

"Yeah!" she nodded.

"I'm glad," Carlos smiled. "And guess who else came?"

"Sata!"

"Santa!"

"We were gonna wait to mention that," Callie said. "Until her grandma and grandpa got over here from the hotel. And Daddy, Addison, and Felicity made their way here."

"Oh."

"But I guess we can stall for a bit."

They got Sofia up and out of bed and she had to go check out the presents. "Sof, I know waiting's no fun, but we're waiting for more people," Arizona said. "Hands off the presents."

Sofia ripped the wrapping paper off of part of the largest gift. It was that doll house that Madre wanted to get her. Daddy and Addison had bought it, figuring it was a toy that both girls would love.

"Yay!" Sofia cheered.

"Sof, that was for Licy, too. You were supposed to wait," Callie said.

"Uh oh!"

Just then, Mark and Addison walked in with Felicity. "Starting a little early, huh?" Mark asked.

"On one of the things that's Licy's too," Arizona nodded.

"Go see, Felicity," Addison said, putting the little girl down. "I don't think she's any less excited," she added as she watched the girls' faces light up as they opened the gift the rest of the way.

Arizona laughed.

* * *

><p>That night, Alex's family was over. While they had agreed to open gifts tomorrow, Anna couldn't wait to give one now.<p>

"Just open one," she said.

"Why?" Izzie asked. "Anna, I can wait."

"It's for Baby," she replied.

"Really, Ma?" Alex asked.

"Of course!"

"You bought Baby Christmas gifts?" Izzie asked. "I'm like five weeks."

"Never too early to start spoiling the little one," Carrie said. "Uncle George and I have something too."

"And Uncle Tony figured that the kid should probably be just a bit more developed before I buy it a Barbie Dream House," Tony joked. "But I'm excited, too."

"Barbie, huh?" Izzie asked as she took the gift from Anna. "We think it's a girl, too."

"So do I," Anna said as Carrie and George nodded. "But that's gender-neutral. In case we're wrong."

Izzie smiled and opened the gift. It was a onesie that read "My Grandma Loves Me."

"So cute," Izzie smiled. "Thanks."

"I just had to get it," she said. "And it's white with red letters, so a boy or a girl could wear it."

"Perfect," she replied.

Oreo came over. "Do you want to see what Baby got?" Alex asked. "Baby got clothes."

"And nobody cares if Hannah's family comes tomorrow?" Izzie double-checked with them.

"Nope," Carrie said.

"This is gonna be such an awesome Christmas."

"Yeah," Alex agreed. "But next year's is gonna top it."

"Clearly."

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